EVER SINCE OTHELLO was first performed in London by William Shakespeare’s theatre group, the King’s Men, on November 1, 1604, it has remained one of the Bard's most popular plays, complete with its themes of racism, love, jealousy and betrayal, all of which are as relevant to life today as they were back then.

After 400 years of literary criticism and essays about Othello, contemporary Shakespeareans are consistently challenged to come up with new readings and interpretations to inform how Shakespeare's works fit into contemporary life, and also to configure the shape of modern theatre productions of the play. How does the plot device of the handkerchief in Othello fit into modern productions, for example, now that the age of women and handkerchief's is over? Also, how does the issue of Othello's race impact contemporary readings of the text of the play?

These are just some of the topics covered by the online articles opposite, and that take the literary criticism of Othello into new essay areas. They have been written by Ben Arogundade, author of The Shakespeare Mash-up.